seinte

Seinte is a historical spelling variant of the English word saint, used in medieval texts to refer to holy persons or to the title preceding a saint’s name. It is encountered largely in Middle English religious literature and hagiography, where scribes and printers recorded the term in forms such as seint, seynte, or seinte depending on regional orthography and manuscript tradition. The form seinte is typically interpreted as the feminine counterpart of saint, mirroring the Old French sainte and the Latin sancta, and it often appears in phrases invoking or naming female saints.

Etymology and usage. The word derives from the same Latin and French roots as the modern English saint. In Middle English, the spelling and pronunciation varied by locality and manuscript, with seint and sainte among the parallel forms. The capitalized usage before a name—for example, Seinte Marie or Seinte Katherine—occurs in contexts where the saint is being treated as a proper title within devotional or didactic passages. As a linguistic artifact, seinte illustrates medieval orthographic diversity and the influence of French on English sacred vocabulary.

Attestation and scholarly interest. Seinte is most often discussed in studies of Middle English orthography, manuscript transmission, and religious literature. It is not a standard modern term but a historical spelling that helps researchers interpret medieval texts, including glossaries, saints’ lives, and devotional poems. Contemporary references to seinte appear mainly in academic editions and linguistic analyses rather than in everyday language.

See also. Saint, Hagiography, Middle English, Old French influence on English, Medieval orthography.